Man of La Mancha comes to Theater Works in Peoria 10/9-25

Laugh, cry and hum along to 'Man of La Mancha' Oct. 9-25. The musical is the opening production of Theater Works' 30th anniversary season at Peoria Center for the Performing Arts.(Photo: Theater Works)

The audience is in for a treat when they see "Man of La Mancha" said Dan Schay, Theater Works executive director.

The musical, packed with drama and a live orchestra, is the opening production of Theater Works' 30th anniversary season at the Peoria Center for the Performing Arts. The show runs Friday, Oct. 9, to Sunday, Oct. 25.

“The audience will laugh, they’ll cry, they’ll hum along with the musical," Schay said. "They'll see dancing, stage action to romance to comedy. It does what a musical is supposed to do. It takes you out of yourself and brings you into a different world."

"Man of La Macha," written by Dale Wasserman, is a story about a character named Miguel de Cervantes. He was tossed in the dungeon during the Spanish Inquisition.

While Cervantes awaits his fate, he falls in love with the idea of becoming a knight in shining armor who does honorable deeds. He renames himself Don Quixote de La Mancha and takes off on an adventure in his mind.

On the journey, he fights windmills because he believes they are monsters, and he arrives at a run-down roadside inn that he thinks is a castle.

Rusty Ferracane of Scottsdale plays the Miguel de Cervantes/Don Quixote. Ferracane, who teaches at Arizona School for the Arts, also played the character at Phoenix Theatre in 2000.

"What I feel is, it is the greatest male role ever written for the musical theater," Ferracane said. "Now that I am older, I have a different perspective on the character, and I've matured as an actor and a singer. I feel I'm more qualified to play it now."